Breakthrough Alcoa Technology Enabling Mass Production of Aluminum Intensive Vehicles Licensed to Industry Globally

Alcoa (NYSE:AA) today announced that its breakthrough 'Alcoa 951?
pre-treatment bonding technology?an enabler for adhesive bonding of
automotive structures?has been licensed to Chemetall in an exclusive
global distribution agreement. The Alcoa technology is the new
pre-treatment bonding standard for aluminum sheet, extrusion and casting
suppliers across the automotive industry. Chemetall is the leading
supplier of surface treatments to the automotive industry, globally.

The use of aluminum in cars is expected to nearly double by 2025
according to automotive original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), and
today is already the second-most-used material to produce cars. As OEMs
work to continue to make cars more fuel efficient, many are expanding
aluminum use from heat exchangers, wheels, drive shafts, engine blocks,
hoods and deck lids to developing aluminum intensive vehicles (AIVs) by
converting the body in white, or body structure, to aluminum. As OEMs
use aluminum body structures to improve fuel efficiency, new joining and
assembly methods are required. 'Alcoa 951? is a patented, non-chrome
approach for enhancing bond durability and enabling more cost-effective,
mass production of AIVs.

In customer trials, 'Alcoa 951? has been proven to be up to nine times
more durable than titanium zirconium applications used in the automotive
industry in the past. These results led OEMs to specify 'Alcoa 951? and
request Alcoa to license it to other suppliers in the industry, hence
the agreement with Chemetall. 'Alcoa 951? technology is being
incorporated into the $300 million automotive expansion underway at
Alcoa′s Davenport (Iowa) Works facility, scheduled for completion by the
end of 2013.

'"Alcoa 951′ is a perfect example of Alcoa Technology Advantage at work
to create value for our customers,? said Kay Meggers, Alcoa Executive
Vice President and Group President of Alcoa Global Rolled Products. 'The
use of this technology is helping to enable greater use of aluminum
throughout the industry and helping make mass-produced
aluminum-intensive vehicles possible. This ultimately saves significant
fuel for consumers who say fuel efficiency is a top factor in their
purchase decision.?

'We look forward to partnering with Chemetall to provide "Alcoa 951′ to
help enable commercialization of adhesive bonding of aluminum structures
in high-volume automotive applications. This, in turn, will drive
lighter vehicle weights and enable the integration of sheet, extrusions,
and castings to ultimately improve fuel efficiency,? said Dr. Raymond
Kilmer, Alcoa Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer.
'The process was developed as a result of collaboration between the
Alcoa Technical Center and our automotive business. We′re excited to see
it commercialized.? The Alcoa Technical Center is the world′s largest
light metals research facility and is located outside Pittsburgh, PA.

About Alcoa 951 Adhesive Bonding

'Alcoa 951? employs an organic, environmentally-friendly system tailored
for both the aluminum substrate and the structural adhesives used for
joining. The pre-treatment delivers far superior bond durability
compared to conversion coating systems such as the titanium zirconium
often used in the past. In fact, customer trials show its durability is
up to nine times stronger than titanium zirconium.

The surface treatment is applied through an immersion or spray
application in which the organic components bond with oxides present on
the metal surface. The molecular structure chemically binds aluminum
oxide with one end, and adhesive with the other. This creates a strong
link at the molecular level resulting in lasting, durable joints for
automotive structures.

The minimal level of treatment on the surface makes it essentially
'transparent? to downstream steps in the automotive manufacturing
process such as forming, resistance spot welding and painting.

Other commercially available conversion coatings, which generally
contain heavy metals and are measurably thicker, lead to potential
environmental concerns and diminished performance in other steps in the
manufacturing process. The attractiveness of 'Alcoa 951? lies in its
repeatability and its simplicity. It does not incorporate exotic
components that threaten the ability to implement the product on a large
scale, and it brings the type of benign environmental impact that
addresses the need for the 'cradle-to-cradle? life cycle required for
aluminum.

About Alcoa

Alcoa is the world′s leading producer of primary and fabricated
aluminum, as well as the world′s largest miner of bauxite and refiner of
alumina. In addition to inventing the modern-day aluminum industry,
Alcoa innovation has been behind major milestones in the aerospace,
automotive, packaging, building and construction, commercial
transportation, consumer electronics and industrial markets over the
past 125 years. Among the solutions Alcoa markets are flat-rolled
products, hard alloy extrusions, and forgings, as well as Alcoa ? wheels,
fastening systems, precision and investment castings, and building
systems in addition to its expertise in other light metals such as
titanium and nickel-based super alloys. Sustainability is an integral
part of Alcoa′s operating practices and the product design and
engineering it provides to customers. Alcoa has been a member of the Dow
Jones Sustainability Index for 11 consecutive years and approximately 75
percent of all of the aluminum ever produced since 1888 is still in
active use today. Alcoa employs approximately 61,000 people in 30
countries across the world. For more information, visit www.alcoa.com
and follow @Alcoa on Twitter at twitter.com/Alcoa and follow Alcoa on
Facebook at www.facebook.com/Alcoa.

About Chemetall

Chemetall, a division of Rockwood Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: ROC), is a
leading global supplier of special chemicals with a focus on processes
for the surface treatment of metals and plastics. Chemetall is
headquartered in Frankfurt am Main, Germany, and comprises about 40
companies worldwide. With 1,900 employees, the Group achieved sales of
about 537 million Euro (2011). More at www.chemetall.com.

Alcoa

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